Indeed it ended the sad ritual of the club dusting him down and bringing him out of cold storage when the injuries that had held him hostage for so long allowed it.

In his place has come Jan Vertonghen - a quality, capable, stylish acquisition. And a bit of a coup as well considering he could easily have gone to a Champions League club (you do wonder whether Manchester United see him as the one that got away).

Jan Vertonghen: a transfer coup (Image: Pete Norton)

The Michael Dawson situation is still a curious one. Even if he stays beyond the deadline he does so knowing that he doesn't figure in AVB's plans.

But the remaining defenders are a good mix of youth and experience and should serve the club well this season.

I reckon many Spurs fans would have been happy had the club landed Adam Johnson from Manchester City ahead of Sunderland.

Willian: will he be coming to the Lane? (Image: Getty)

But, as it is, AVB wants the Shakhtar Donetsk winger Willian who is better than both Johnson and Lennon.

And although Tottenham were having a laugh with their opening gambit of £11.8million this week, they should get back to reality quickly enough to get closer to the Ukrainian club's £20million valuation before Friday's deadline.

For his age (24), Willian has an excellent winning mentality. He has already helped his club to the UEFA Cup, four Ukrainian Premier League titles, three Ukrainian Cups and three Ukrainian Super Cups.

Before that he also claimed the South American Youth Championship with Brazil's Under-20 side.

Little wonder then that Spurs have put all their energies in trying to bring him in.

And although they have started slowly, the new-look Spurs team - containing Willian, Dembele and Vertonghen - even without the aforementioned rabbits - looks to have a solid foundation, strength in midfield and pace, creativity and goals up front.

The return of Emmanuel Adebayor brings a continuity back to the Tottenham attack. His 18 goals last season were a good start and the challenge for him now is to defy those who believe he can only do it at the start of the season or when he is trying to earn a move or a contract.

But the striker situation is still an interesting one. AVB does want to keep Jermain Defoe despite the interest in him from other clubs.

The two men have talked and the former Porto and Chelsea boss has explained to the England striker just how he fits into his plans.

Defoe, in turn, has been enthused by the support he has had from the new boss and is ready to repay that faith.

You do wonder, however, what will happen if Spurs bring in one more goal-getter either now or in January.